. . . . .

The bus pulled to a stop by the flagpole. The guy counsellor on the bus called out "welcome to Camp Woodlake! We need everyone to get off the bus but stay nearby so you can get your bags."

He was all but shouting because most of the kids had on headphones of one kind or another. The girl counsellor was first out and was directing where everyone should wait. Chris and Janine, those were their names. Oliver put his Ipod back in his pocket and saw that Lily was still staring out the window.

"Hey," he reached out and put his hand on her shoulder to jog her out of her funk. Her entire body, head to toe, twitched, as if she were made entirely out of springs.

"Lilly we're here." Oliver ran the words out of his mouth.

"Oh, I hadn't noticed, thanks Oliver" she said, exhaling loudly.

They stood up and he moved back a bit in the aisle so she could exit ahead of him. Bad news, this girl is bad news. Forget it Mom, I'll talk to her just enough to keep you off my back, but other than that she is radioactive to me. Well, he could get some more of his Lillysitting duties over now.

"We have to check in at those tables. When we do, they'll give us each wristbands. The color of the band matches the color each cabin door is painted. Our band color is our cabin. The cabins are all in a line and the colors run in that ROY-G-BIV thing like in science at school. Just don't loose your wristband for the first few days and you'll be fine.

"The color of the band matches the color of the door. Do you mean they have the boys and girls mixed in the same cabins based on the colors?"

Oliver had to smile. "No, there are two lines of cabins. Two of each color. One boys and one girls. Don't worry, you'll catch on quick enough."

Soon enough they both had wristbands. Hers was orange, his green.

"Come on, I'll help you find your cabin so you can get settled in."

They started walking. She still wasn't saying much of anything, but at least she was smiling and looking around, not disconnected from her surroundings the way she was on the bus. They passed the green cabins.

"This is my cabin here." He gave his duffle a huge toss, trying to land it on the steps leading to the door. It fell noticeably short. He ignored that, as if he hadn't tried his best and failed. A little more walking brought them to her cabin.

"Here you are Lilly. You're going to like it here. There's a lot of fun stuff to do. Seeyalata."

"Thanks, Oliver. See you."

Oliver quickwalked back to Green. He grabbed his duffle and dragged it into the cabin. As he feared, he was last in. Great. Babysitting just cost him any choice of bunk.

"What's open" he called out to no one in particular. Three boys pointed to the far end of the cabin, by where the councellor who stayed with them had his bunk. Great. Everyone will think I'm either a snitch or a crybaby.

"Hey guy" one of the boys approached him. "No fair bringing your girlfriend from home here."

He was taller than Oliver and had longish blond hair.

And so it begins, thought Oliver. He looked at his wristband. If a guy could get a girl to wear his wristband, it meant he had a camp girlfriend, and was a real stud. If not, he was just another camp dork. Like Oliver, last year.

"She's just a girl from my school. I just showed her to her cabin."

"Yeah, sure." the other boy said, in a voice oozing disbelief. He seemed pretty full of himself, Oliver thought.

"Oliver," said Oliver.

"Ace." The boys shook hands.

. . . . .

Lilly walked up the stairs to the cabin and went in. There were a number of girls already inside, unpacking their bags into drawers built in under each bunk, several chatting familiarly with each other. I wonder if they're friends from home, Lilly thought, or if they've been here together before?

"Hi Lilly," it was the councellor from the bus, Janine. She must be assigned to us here. "This cabin won't be full this session, so there are several open bunks. Why don't you try that one by Maryla?"

Lilly went to the bunk suggested, and put her bag on it.

"Hi" said the girl on the bunk beside hers.

"Hi, you," Lilly responded. Maryla was a pretty girl with long brunette hair. She had made eye contact with Lilly for all of two seconds. Great. She's too shy to even look at me and I'm too messed up to want to make friends. These are going to be two fun weeks.

Sunday Night

Lilly lay in her bunk tying to prevent the tears from starting. Her efforts failed as they had these past several weeks of nights and she felt tears tracing paths down her cheeks. Having lost that struggle she switched her focus to crying as quietly as possible. At this she met with some success, her sobs barely audible, the wracking of her body barely noticible under the covers. Maybe it won't happen tonight, she thought. It didn't happen every night, just most nights. This was her first night in camp, her first night ever away from home without her parents. Maybe it would be enough to keep the nightmare from coming. The other girls seemed all to be asleep, at least she would be spared embarrasment in the morning. She rubbed her eyes in an effort to stop crying, and tried to fall asleep.

Janine felt relieved at seeing but one girl having real difficulty settling in, having expected two. Twelve year old Maryla had been skittish all day, holding herself back from the others, speaking only in response to being spoken to. But a few words of encouragement was push enough to make the girl at least a semi-participant, tolerated if not entirely welcomed.

Thirteen year old Lilly was a different story. Sullen and withdrawn, her attitude didn't seem to match the athletic girl the counsellor saw. Something clearly was wrong with Lilly, and in the stillness of the darkened cabin Janine could hear her crying. She had been a last minute addition to the roster, and Janine wondered why the sudden interest in camp.

There was one other girl who would bear watching. Fourteen year old Gayle was angry. Just three weeks shy of fifteen, she had wanted to be placed with the older campers, not held back with those she called the kiddies. She had spent the day barking at everyone, and with a bully's sense of those most vulnerable, had paid particular attention to Lilly and Maryla. She would likely make this last group of campers for the season a source of constant nuisance for the counsellor.

. . . . .

Lilly awoke to angry voices. It was the middle of the night, all had been still. Now everything shook with each harsh shout. She got out of bed and came downstairs. Angry words but somehow familiar voices. She saw her parents arguing, their faces twisted masks of rage. Each suddenly had a a chainsaw, and Lilly watched in horror as her parents ran around the room, hacking at the walls and the furniture with the loud devices. She ran into the room and screamed for them to stop. Her mother and father turned to her, focused feral, glowing eyes on her, and then they attacked, and chopped her to pieces with the saws.

Lilly, gasping loudly, sat up in her bunk. The nightmare had followed her to camp.

She covered her face with her hands and burst into tears, struggling to keep quiet enough to not wake anyone. She sat so, quietly crying, for almost ten minutes, then lay down again, sobbing until sleep ended her tears.